LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Class 


PAPERS  ON  SCHOOL  ISSUES  OF  THE  DAY.    VI. 


OPPORTUNITIES 


—OF    THE— 


RURAL  POPULATION 


-FOR- 


HIGHER   EDUCATION. 


—BY— 

JAMES  H.  CANFIELD, 

President  of  the  National  Educational  Association. 

READ    AS    THE    REPORT   OF    THE    COMMITTEE   ON    SECONDARY 

EDUCATION    BEFORE    THE    NATIONAL    COUNCIL    OF 

EDUCATION,    JULY,    1889. 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


SYRACUSE,    N.    Y. : 

C.    W.    BARDEEN,    PUBLISHER, 

1889. 


— ' — THE  SCHOOL  ZULLETffl  FUBLICATIG. 

School  Records  and  Reports, 

1.  The  Bulletin  Class  Register.  Designed  by  EDWAKD  SMITH,  Superin- 
tendent of  Schools,  Syracuse,  N.  Y.  Press-board  cover.  Three  Sizes,  (a)  6x7? 
fortermsof  twenty  weeks;  (b)  5x7,  for  terms  of  fourteen  weeks.  When  noc 
otherwise  specified  this  size  is  always  sent.  Pp.  48.  Each  25  cts.  (c),  like  (6) 
but  with  one-half  more  (72)  pages.  Each  35  cts. 

This  register  gives  lines  on  each  of  12  pages  for  23  names,  and  by  a  nar- 
row tea/puts  opposite  these  names  blanks  for  one  entry  each  day  for  either 
14  or  20  weeks,'  as  desired,  with  additional  lines  for  summary,  examina- 
tions, and  remarks.  Nothing  can  bo  more  simple,  compact,  and  neat,  wl « 're 
it  is  desired  simply  to  keep  a  record  of  attendance,  deportment,  and  • 
standing.  It  is  uaed  in  nearly  two-thirds  of  the  union  schools  of  New  York. 

&  The  Peabody  Class  Record,  No.  1,  with  3  blanks  to  each  scholar  each 
day  for  a  year.  Boards  4*^x9>£,  pp.  ICO,  $1.00.  No.  2,  with  5  blanks  to  each 
scholar,  8x11,  $1.50.  Like  No.  1,  but  gives  3  or  5  blanks  each  day. 

8.    Ryan's  School  Record,  112  blanks  to  a  sheet,  per  dozen  sheets,  50  cts. 

k.  Kellers  Monthly  Rerxn^t  Card,  to  be  returned  with  signature  of  parent 
or  guardian,  card-board  2^x4,  per  hundred,  $1.00. 

5.  Babcock's  Excelsior  Grading  Blanks,  manilla,  3x5,  with  blanks  on  both 
Sides.    Comprising  («)  Eeport  Cards;  (6)  Grade  Certificates  for  each  of  9 
grades;  (c)  High  School  Certificate  (double  size).    Price  of  (a)  and  (6)  $1.00  a 
hundred;  of  (c)  $1.50  a  hundred. 

6.  Shaw's  Scholar's  Register,  for  each  "Week,  with  Abstract  for  the  Term. 
Paper,  5x7*  pp.  16.    Per  dozen,  50  cts.    Each  pupil  keeps  his  own  record. 

7.  Jackson' 's  Class  Record  Cards.    Per  set  of  90  white  and  10  colored 
cards,  with  hints,  50  cts.    Only  imperfect  recitations  need  be  marked. 

8.  Aids  to  School  Discipline,  containing  80  Certificates,  120  Checks,  200 
Cards,  100  Single  and  Half  Merits.    Per  box,  $1.25.    Supplied  separately  per 
huucivcd:  Hair  Merits,  15 cts.,  Cards,  15cts.,  Checks,  50cts.,  Certificates, 

The  use  of  millions  of  these  Aids,  with  the  unqualified  approval  of  teach- 
ers, parents,  and  pupils,  is  assurance  that  they  are  doing  great  good. 

They  save  time  by  avoiding  the  drudgery  of  Record  keeping  and  Reports. 

They  abolish  all  notions  of  "partiality"  by  determining  the  pupil's 
standing  with  mathematical  precision. 

They  naturally  and  invariably  awaken  a  lively  paternal  interest,  for  the 
pupil  takes  home  with  him  the  witness  of  his  daily  conduct  and  procrr. 

They  are  neat  in  design,  printed  in  bright  colors.    The  Ceriific; 
prizes  which  children  will  cherish.    The  Single  Merits  and  Half  Merits  are 
printed  on  heavy  card  board,  the  Cards  and  Checks  on  heavy  paper,  and  both 
may  be  used  many  times— hence  the  system  is  cheap,  as  well  as  more  at- 
tractive than  any  other  to  young  children. 

9.  Mottoes  for  the  School-Room.    By  A.  W.  EDSON,  State  Agent  o!' 
ehusetts.    Per 'set  of  12  on  heavy  colored  card-board  7x4  inches,  printed  on 
both  sides,  $1.00,  post-paid,  $1.10. 

These  mottoes  are  •'  Never  too  Late,"  "  Above  all.  be  Useful,"  " 
Say  No,"  "  God  Bless  our  School,"  "  Avoid  Ai\&er,"  "Be  Good,  Bo  Good," 
"Think,  Speak,  Act  the  Truth,"  "Fear  to  Do  Wrong,"  "Misspent  Time  is 
Lost  Forever,"  "Speak  ths  Truth,"  "  Act  Well  Your  Part,"  "Strive to  Ex- 
cel," "Try,  Tiy  A  train,"  "  Be  Diligent,  Prompt,  and  Useful,"  Think  Good 
Thoughts,"  "Learn to  Study,"  "  Before  Pleasure  Comes  Duty,"  "Think 
First  of  Others,"  "  Care  to  Lo  Right,"  "  Order  is  Heaven's  First  Law,"  "A 
Will  Hakes  a  Way,"  "Study  to  Learn,"  "Hold  Fast  to  Honor,"  "God 
Sees  Me."  (12) 

C.  W.  BAKDEEN,  Publisher,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 


(A  paper  read  before  the  Nat^J^l^Mncil  of  Edfcat^n,  at  Nashville,  Tenii.,  July,  1889.) 
' OF  THF. 

ONIVERSr 


REPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEE  ON  SECONDARY  EDUCATION. 


THE  OPPORTUNITIES  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION  FOR 
HIGHER  EDUCATION. 

[PREPARED  AND  PRESENTED  BY  JAMES  H.  CANFIELD.] 

After  a  careful  survey  of  the  field  assigned  to  the  Committee  on  Secondary 
Education,  it  was  determined  to  make  an  investigation  of  the  opportunities 
and  inducements  offered  the  rural  population  of  this  country  for  securing 
the  advantages  of  higher  education.  Accordingly  three  forms  of  circulars 
^•ere  prepared,  each  having  a  suitable  prefatory  note  explaining  the  work 
of  the  committee,  and  asking  for  information  and  for  a  free  expression  of 
opinion.  The  first  of  these  circulars  was  addressed  to  State  Superintendents 
of  Public  Instruction,  and  contained  the  following  inquiries: 

1.  The  school  population  of  this  State  is .     Of  this  about per  cent,  be- 
longs in  the  district  (rural  or  ungraded )  schools.     The  minimum  course  of  study 
required  in  these  rural  schools  includes  the  following  branches:  . 

2.  The  following  higher  branches  may  be  taken  up  in  such  schools:  . 

3.  Does  your  statute  compel,  or  permit,  the  creation  of  township  high  schools, 
union  high  schools,  or  city  high  schools? 

4.  What  are  the  opportunities  offered  the  pupils  of  rural  districts  in  your  State 
for  academic  (or  preparatory)  work? 

The  second  circular  was  sent  to  presidents  of  State  educational  institu- 
tions, and  ran  as  follows : 

1.  Institution, . 

2.  Total  attendance, .     Number  in  preparatory  classes, .     What  propor- 
tion of  your  students  come  from  rural  districts  and  from  small  towns  in  which  there 
are  no  high  schools?     . 

3.  Why  not  more? 

4.  Why  do  you  maintain  preparatory  classes? 

5.  What  are  the  requirements  for  admission  to  the  lowest  preparatory  class? 

6.  Does  the  average  rural  (district)  school  fully  prepare  students  for  the  lowest 
preparatory  class? 

7.  Where  are  most  of  your  candidates 'for  freshman  class  prepared? 

8.  What  opportunities  are  offered  the  people  of  the  rural  districts  in  your  State 
for  academic  (or  preparatory)  work? 

9.*  What  is  the  average  annual  expenditure  of  the  State  for  the  university? 

10.  What  proportion  of  this  comes  from  endowment,  and  what  from  annual  ap- 
propriations? •• 

11.  What  is  the  average  annual  attendance  at  the  university  aside  from  those  in 
the  preparatory  department? 

12.*  What  are  the  average  annual  fees,  if  any,  per  capita  annual  attendance? 

*  Questions  9-12  were  designed  to  inform  the  committee  of  the  interest  felt  in  higher  education. 
It  will  be  sufficient  for  the  purposes  of  this  report  to  state  that  the  answers  showed  what  may  be  fairly 
considered  liberal  appropriations  for  such  work,  and  small  tuition  fees.  Higher  education  can  be  re- 
ported as  receiving  very  general  encouragement. 

193393 


NATIONAL    COUNCIL    OF  EDUCATION. 


13.  In  your  judgment,  is  there  any  break  in  the  possible  connection  of  the  rural 
(district)  school  with  the  university? 

14.  If  yes,  how  can  this  best  be  remedied? 

The  third  circular  was  more  general  in  form,  and  was  intended  for  city 
and  county  superintendents,  principals  of  high  schools,  and  other  educators 
sufficiently  well  and  favorably  known  to  entitle  their  views  to  more  than 
ordinary  consideration.  Following  are  the  questions  asked : 

1.  Has  your  State  University  a  preparatory  department  or  preparatory  classes? 

2.  Why? 

3.  Does  the  average  rural  (district)  ungraded  school  fully  prepare  students  for 
the  preparatory  classes? 

4.  Has  your  State  a  system-  of  city  high  schools  ? 

5.  Is  tuition  generally  free  in  these  city  high  schools  ? 

6.  If  no,  what  are  the  average  annual  fees  per  capita  of  attendance? 

7.  How  many  such  high  schools  are  doing  what  might  be  called  first-class  aca- 
demic work,  including  languages  and  higher  mathematics? 

8.  How  many  such  high  schools  are  able  to  prepare  students  to  enter  the  fresh- 
man class  of  the  State  university,  or  of  any  educational  institution  of  similar  rank? 

9.  Can  pupils  from  rural  districts  enter  these  high  schools  freely,  or  in  limited 
numbers?     Without  fees,  by  payment  of  ordinary  fees,  or  by  payment  of  special 
fees? 

10.  Is  any  special  effort  made  to  attract  pupils  from  the  rural  districts  to  these 
high  schools?     Are  such  pupils  welcomed,  or  repelled? 

11.  Are  cities  compelled  by  law  to  establish  these  high  schools  by  any  limit  of 
population,  or  other  condition? 

12.  Have  rural  districts  any  voice  in  establishing  such  high  schools,  or  in  their 
management? 

13.  Is  there  any  statute  by  which  either  township  or  county  high  schools  may  be 
established  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  children  of  rural  districts?     If  yes,  please 
give  its  substance. 

14.  Have  schools  been  established  under  these  provisions?     If  yes,  with  what  suc- 
cess?    If  no,  why  not? 

15.  If  township  high  schools  have  been  tried  without  success,  has  it  not  been 
chiefly  because  of  too  narrow  a  field  from  which  to  draw  either  pupils  or  means  of 
support? 

16.  Is  it  your  opinion  that  secondary  or  academic  schools  should  be  so  provided 
by  the  State  as  to  offer  every  opportunity  and  inducement  to  pupils  from  the  rural 
districts? 

17.  If  no,  why  not? 

18.  If  yes,  should  this  be  left  to  the  chance  of  city  building  and  city  improving? 

19.  Should  the  people  of  the  rural  districts  have  legislative  permission  and  in- 
centive to  make  the  necessary  provision? 

20.  Considering  such  questions  as  necessary  expense  and  consequent  taxation, 
the  diminishing  per  cent,  of  pupils  who  pass  from  grade  to  grade  and  then  to  higher 
work,  and  the  fact  that  in  so  many  States  the  county  is  the  unit  of  local  government, 
ought  provision,  if  any,  to  be  made  for  township  higti  schools  or  for  county  high 
schools  ? 

21.  Need  (ought)  the  necessary  legislation  to  in  any  way  affect  the  present  high- 
school  system? 

22.  Is  there  necessarily  danger  that  a  county  high  school  will  become  simply  the 
local  high  school  of  the  community  in  which  it  is  established? 


HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE*  RUBAL  POPULATION.  3 

23.  Is  there  in  truth  a  State  system  of  public  instruction,  unless  it  is  Huxley's 
Educational  Ladder  —  "one  end  in  the  gutter  and  the  other  in  the  university"  — 
with  all  possible  provision  for  intermediate  work,  "with  every  round  complete"? 

24.  Remarks. 

NOTE. — The  committee  desired  not  only  to  secure  information,  but  to 
awaken  thought  and  discussion.  It  will  be  seen  that  some  of  these  ques- 
tions were  shaped  more  for  the  latter  end  than  simply  to  secure  statistical 
information. 

Whenever  the  committee  thought  it  possible  to  secure  more  than  one  re- 
port on  the  same  subject,  the  three  circulars  were  sent  to  the  same  person  — 
thus  crossing  and  re-crossing  the  ground  in  a  way  to  insure  accuracy  as  to 
facts,  and  breadth  and  variety  of  opinion. 

The  responses  to  these  inquiries  have  been  very  gratifying,  both  in  the 
large  territory  from  which  reports  have  been  received,  and  in  the  manifest 
care  with  which  the  blanks  were  filled.  Often  the  interest  was  sufficient  to 
lead  the  correspondent  to  add  matter  not  covered  by  the  queries,  or  to  ex- 
press at  considerable  length  his  opinion  on  some  given  point.  The  follow- 
ing will  serve  to  illustrate  the  wide  range  of  the  individual  and  institutional 
observations  and  experience  which  has  been  cheerfully  placed  at  the  service 
of  this  committee: 

Reports  were  made  by  the  Superintendents  of  Public  Instruction  of  the 
following  States  and  Territories :  Alabama,  Arizona,  California,  Colorado, 
Connecticut,  Dakota,  Florida,  Georgia,  Illinois,  Indiana,  Iowa,  Maryland, 
Massachusetts,  Michigan,  Minnesota,  Nebraska,  Nevada,  New  Hampshire, 
Ohio,  Oregon,  Pennsylvania,  Rhode  Island,  Texas,  Vermont,  Virginia, 
Washington,  Wisconsin  —  27.  In  addition  to  the  returns  on  the  blanks, 
the  last  official  ( printed )  report  of  the  superintendent  was  sent  from  each 
of  the  following:  Arkansas,  Dakota,  Iowa,  Kansas,  Michigan,  Pennsyl- 
vania, Texas,  Wyoming — 8. 

From  the  Presidents  of  State  Universities  and  State  Normal  Schools  were 
received  reports  representing:  Alabama,  Colorado,  Dakota,  Georgia,  Illi- 
nois, Indiana,  Iowa,  Kansas,  Maine,  Michigan,  Minnesota,  Mississippi,  Mis- 
souri, Nebraska,  North  Dakota,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania,  Tennessee,  Texas, 
Vermont  — 20. 

The  City  Superintendents  reported,  as  follows:  California — Los  Angeles; 
Georgia  — Atlanta;  Idaho  —  Moscow;  Illinois  —  Lake  View;  Indiana  — 
Attica,  Fort  Wayne,  Indianapolis,  Lafayette;  Kentucky  —  Paducah;  Mas- 
sachusetts —  Boston,  Worcester  ;  Minnesota  —  Minneapolis  ;  Missouri  — 
Kansas  City;  Montana  —  Helena;  Nebraska — Edgar,  Lincoln ;  New  York 
— Albany,  New  Berlin,  Syracuse ;  Ohio  —  Cincinnati ;  Rhode  Island — Prov- 
idence; Tennessee  —  Clarksville;  Texas  —  Fort  Worth;  Utah  —  Ogden; 
Washington  —  Tacoma ;  West  Virginia  —  Morgantown  ;  Wisconsin  —  Fond 
du  Lac;  Wyoming  —  Cheyenne;  —  28. 

Twenty-seven  County  Superintendents  reported,  from  the  following :  Call- 


NATIONAL   COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 


fornia,  Dakota,  Idaho,  Illinois,  Indiana,  Iowa,  Maryland,  Minnesota,  Ne- 
braska, Wisconsin  — 10. 

In  addition  to  these,  were  reports  from  eight  presidents  of  colleges  not 
under  State  control,  from  nineteen  professors  or  instructors  in  State  or  de- 
nominational institutions,  and  from  three  editors  and  publishers.  The  total 
number  of  separate  reports  received  is  two  hundred  and  sixty-three.  As 
these  correspondents  were  not  chosen  haphazard,  but  with  all  possible  care, 
the  returns  will  be  seen  to  have  special  value. 

The  nature. of  the  questions  and  replies  is  such  as  will  not  readily  admit 
of  tabulation.  Later  in  this  report  an  effort  will  be  made  to  arrange  and 
summarize  certain  statements  made  in  answer  to  some  of  the  more  categori- 
cal queries. 

STATE   SUPERINTENDENTS    (29). 

The  reports  on  per  cent,  of  children  in  rural  or  ungraded  schools  vary, 
naturally  enough,  according  to  the  section  of  the  country  from  which  they 
come.  The  South,  which  has  just  undertaken  public  (general)  education, 
can  show  little  advance  in  matters  of  system ;  from  eighty  to  ninety  per 
cent,  of  its  school  population  is  to  be  found  in  the  ungraded  schools,  which 
is  doubtless  practically  all  that  is  actually  in  attendance.  The  Western 
States  show  from  fifty  to  sixty  per  cent,  in  such  schools ;  and  the  New  Eng- 
land and  Middle  States  from  twenty  to  thirty  per  cent.  From  data  fur- 
nished by  these  reports  and  secured  from  other  sources,  the  average  of 
twenty-three  leading  States  is  a  trifle  above  sixty  per  cent. 

The  minimum  course  of  study  required  in  the  ungraded  schools  seems  to 
universally  include  reading,  writing,  spelling,  English  grammar,  geography, 
and  arithmetic.  Nearly  all  States  add  United  States  history.  Very  many 
include  physiology,  quite  generally  with  special  reference  to  use  of  narcotics 
and  stimulants.  Florida  adds  manual  training.  California  adds  vocal 
music,  elementary  book-keeping,  industrial  drawing,  and  practical  ento- 
mology. Oregon  adds  "familiar  science,"  "elements  of  citizenship,"  vocal 
music,  and  drawing.  Michigan  reports  no  required  minimum ;  the  question 
as  to  what  shall  be  taught  being  left  entirely  to  the  district  board. 

The  permissive  course  in  ungraded  schools  seems  to  .very  generally  in- 
clude algebra,  geometry,  physiology,. book-keeping,  and  drawing.  Florida 
adds  Latin.  Oregon  adds  chemistry,  botany,  general  history,  and  English 
literature.  There  is  a  very  general  reference  of  the  permissive  course  to 
the  county  or  district  authorities,  with  power  to  act. 

As  to  whether  the  statute  compels  or  permits  the  establishment  of  high 
schools,  Massachusetts  is  the  only  State  reporting  a  compulsory  law.  In 
this  State  "every  town  may,  and  every  town  containing  five  hundred  fami- 
lies or  householders  must"  maintain  a  high  school,  in  which  shall  be  taught 
"  general  history,  book-keeping,  surveying,  geometry,  natural  philosophy, 
chemistry,  botany,  the  civil  polity  of  this  commonwealth  and  of  the  United 
States,  and  the  Latin  language." 


HI  GHEE  EDUCATION  OF   THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  5 

With  respect  to  the  opportunities  offered  the  pupils  of  the  rural  districts 
for  academic  (or  preparatory)  work,  the  reports  very  generally  agree  that 
there  are  few,  if  any,  outside  a  fee  school,  the  existence  of  which  is  a  matter 
of  chance,  and  in  which  room  is  always  doubtful,  as  preference  is  given 
resident  pupils,  and  very  few  cities  build  beyond  their  own  needs.  Under 
the  Minnesota  plan,  which  will  be  described  later  in  this  report,  sixty-three 
State  high  schools  are  in  existence.  Indiana  reports  "a  good  many  town- 
ship graded  schools."  Several  States  seem  to  think  the  want  is  met  by 
"several  colleges  and  universities  with  preparatory  departments."  The 
very  general  opinion  of  our  correspondents  in  State  offices  seems  to  be  that 
there  is  a  wide  gap  between  the  rural  school  and  higher  institutions,  to 
bridge  which  neither  opportunity  nor  inducement  is  offered. 

STATE   INSTITUTIONS    OF    HIGHER    LEARNING    (20). 

As  nearly  as  can  be  determined  from  reports  to  this  committee,  and  from 
other  reliable  data,"  of  nearly  four  hundred  institutions  of  higher  learning 
in  the  United  States,  only  sixty-five  have  freed  themselves  from  the  embar- 
rassment of  a  preparatory  department.  Eleven  of  these  more  advanced 
institutions  are  directly  under  State  control,  forming  not  quite  half  of  the 
State  universities  reported  by  the  United  States  Commissioner  of  Edu- 
cation. Five-sixths  of  all  the  so-called  colleges  and  universities  in  the 
United  States  and  jnore  than  half  the  State  universities  still  find  it  neces- 
sary to  do  academic  (preparatory)  work.  If  there  is  a  normal  school  — 
State  or  other — not  doing  a  large  amount  of  academic  work,  its  existence 
is  unknown  to  your  committee. 

The  reason  universally  given  for  this  continuance  of  work  which  simply 
embarrasses  those  properly  engaged  in  higher  instruction,  and  the  support 
of  which  is  sometimes  gravely  considered  a  misappropriation  of  trust-funds,  is 
simply  that  there  is  no  adequate  preparation  for  higher  institutions  offered 
under  the  State  system.  This  is  the  answer  returned,  in  apparent  good 
faith,  by  every  institution  reporting. 

It  seems  to  have  been  difficult  for  our  correspondents  to  make  very  accu- 
rate estimates  of  the  per  cent,  of  students  coming  from  rural  (or  ungraded) 
districts.  Upon  two  points,  however,  there  is  substantial  unanimity:  (1) 
Such  students  are  present  in  higher  classes  in  perceptible  numbers  only 
where  there  is  a  preparatory  department,  the  largest  number  under  other 
circumstances  not  exceeding  twenty  per  cent.;  (2)  with  one  exception,  the 
reason  for  this  small  enrollment  is  given  as  "  want  of  opportunities  and  in- 
ducement to  prepare."  This  one  exceptional  reason  is,  "Because  the  people 
who  seek  higher  education  are  relatively  more  numerous  in  cities  and  towns 
than  in  rural  districts."  But,  query:  (1)  Is  this  statement  true?  Your 
committee  incline  to  a  contrary  belief — i.  e.,  that  in  proportion  to  popula- 
tion, cities  do  not  furnish  a  greater  number  seeking  higher  education  than 
rural  districts  furnish.  (2)  If  the  statement  be  true,  is  it  not  because  of 
the  opportunity  offered  in  cities,  which  is  rarely  known  in  rural  districts? 


NATIONAL   COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 


The  requirements  for  admission  to  the  lowest  preparatory  class  generally 
indicate  that  the  university  is  striving  through  its  preparatory  department 
to  keep  touch  with  the  most  elementary  schools  —  the  rural  and  ungraded 
schools.  The  effect  of  this  on  the  universities  or  colleges  —  and  on  the  high 
schools,  which  are  in  existence,  but  thus  largely  fail  of  recognition  —  is 
readily  seen. 

Where  the  preparatory  departments  are  retained,  nearly  seventy-five  per 
cent,  of  the  upper-class  men  are  prepared  by  the  University  itself,  thus  show- 
ing again  but  slight  contact  with  such  high  schools  as  have  been  established, 
and  therefore  but  slight  influence  over  them.  Where  there  is  no  prepara- 
tory department  the  rural  population  has  small  representation,  and  the  work 
of  preparation  is  reported  to  be  done  at  private  schools,  or  at  high  schools 
in  the  nearest  town,  generally  upon  payment  of  term  fees. 

With  one  voice  these  twenty  representatives  of  higher  State  institutions 
declare  that  "there  are  no  opportunities  offered  the  people  of  the  rural  dis- 
tricts for  academic  (or  preparatory)  work,  except  as  they  may  go  to  private 
schools,  or  (that  whiqh  is  practically  the  same  thing)  to  high  schools  in  ad- 
joining cities,  provided  (1)  such  high  schools  have  been  established ;  (2)  that 
provision  has  been  made  for  the  admission  of  non-resident  pupils;  (3)  that 
there  is  room  for  non-resident  pupils;  and  (4)  that  certain  fees  are  paid,  very 
generally." 

Asked  if,  in  their  judgment,  there  is  any  break  in  the  possible  connection 
of  the  rural  (ungraded)  school  with  the  university  or  higher  education,  twelve 
of  these  correspondents  answer  emphatically, "  Yes."  One  says, "  No."  One 
says,  "No  serious  break."  One  says,  "No  break  in  the  possible  connection, 
but  in  the  actual."  One  is  in  doubt.  The  others  are  silent,  though  their 
answers  to  the  next  question  seem  to  imply  that  they  recognize  the  gap  in 
the  system. 

As  to  a  remedy,  the  opinion  is  somewhat  divided.  There  is  frequent  repe- 
tition of  the  rather  vague  statement :  "  Make  better  use  of  the  schools  already 
established,"  or  the  even  more  vague  advice,  "Make  the  public  schools 
better."  Kansas  says,  "  Students  from  the  rural  schools  should  be  admitted 
to  the  high  school  of  the  nearest  city."  Minnesota  has  its  own  system  of 
city  high  schools  with  State  aid,  and  refers  to  this  as  successful.  Tennessee 
says  emphatically,  "  By  good  county  high  schools,  and  not  humbug  *  col- 
leges.' "  Michigan  says,  "By  establishing  a  high  school  in  each  county." 
Indiana  feels  that  the  local  high  schools  need  restricting  to  a  purely  academic 
basis,  the  present  tendency  being  to  imitate  small  colleges.  Illinois  says 
that  there  must  be  a  link  found,  as  in  that  State  not  one-half  of  one  per  cent, 
of  the  population  of  school  age  is  in  institutions  even  by  courtesy  called 
colleges. 

MISCELLANEOUS    REPORTS    (207). 

The  miscellaneous  or  general  reports  represent  the  following  States: 
Alabama,  4 ;  Arizona,  1 ;  California,  8 ;  Colorado,  5 ;  Connecticut,  3 ;  Da- 


HIGHEE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  EUEAL  POPULATION.  1 

kota,  4;  District  of  Columbia,  1 ;  Florida,  2;  Georgia,  3;  Idaho,  2;  Illinois, 
11;  Indiana,  15;  Iowa,  11;  Kansas,  6;  Kentucky,  7;  Maine,  3;  Maryland, 
3;  Massachusetts,  7;  Michigan,  9;  Minnesota,  8;  Mississippi,  3;  Missouri, 
6;  Montana,  2;  Nebraska,  8;  Nevada,  4;  New  Hampshire,  3 ;  New  Mexico, 
2;  New  York,  7;  Ohio,  8;  Oregon,  4;  Pennsylvania,  4;  Rhode  Island,  5; 
Tennessee,  6;  Texas,  7;  Utah,  1;  Vermont,  3;  Virginia,  4;  Washington,  3 ; 
West  Virginia,  2;  Wisconsin,  11;  Wyoming,  1.  It  will  be  seen  that  these 
reports  cover  the  Union  as  completely  as  can  be  expected,  unless  such  a  re- 
port as  this  is  to  be  made  by  officials  whose  duty  it  is  to  look  after  such 
matters.  Your  committee  believes  that  in  point  of  intelligent  apprehension 
of  what  was  sought  by  the  circulars  and  of  intelligent  replies,  these  reports 
surpass  those  generally  known  as  "  official."  * 

The  first  two  questions  in  the  general  circular  were  answered  much  as 
would  be  anticipated.  Where  State  universities  have  no  preparatory  de- 
partments, the  reason  generally  assigned  is  that  there  are  a  sufficient  num- 
ber of  well-conducted  high  schools  to  do  the  preparatory  work.  That  the 
word  "sufficient"  is  used  rather  carelessly,  is  shown  by  a  consideration  of 
some  of  the  later  replies.  Where  there  is  a  preparatory  department  it  is 
said  to  be  because  students  cannot  secure  good  secondary  instruction  else- 
where, or  cannot  secure  it  without  great  inconvenience  and  expense. 

A  number  of  special  statements  are  made,  however,  to  a  few  of  which  — 
as  being  rather  suggestive  —  your  attention  is  directed.  The  committee  is 
content  to  quote  without  comment:  "Our  city  high  schools  are  rather  finisli- 
^i^-schools  than  ^m^-schools,  hence  we  have  a  preparatory  department." 
"It  is  hard  to  say  why  our  preparatory  department  is  continued  on  funds 
set  aside  for  purposes  of  higher  education.  This  has  never  been  defended." 
"We  have  no  preparatory  department,  as  we  think  it  our  place  to  encour- 
age rather  than  discourage  the  high  schools  of  the  State."  There  is  a  certain 
brutal  frankness  in  the  statement,  "  We  maintain  a  preparatory  department 
in  order  to  keep  up  a  show  of  numbers ; "  yet  this  comes  from  one  of  the  most 
advanced  State  institutions.  "  We  have  no  preparatory  department,  because 
the  freshman  class  is  graded  down  to  touch  the  country  district  schools." 
"We  continue  our  preparatory  work,  because  a  large  number  of  those 
desiring  to  enter  can  have  no  other  access  to  means  of  preparation."  ''Our 
university  still  has  a  preparatory  department,  because  it  is  more  of  a  gram- 
mar school  than  a  university."  "Our  preparatory  department  has  been 
discontinued,  because  we  determined  that  it  was  not  within  the  purpose  of 
our  endowment." 

Even  with  preparatory  departments,  the  answers  to  question  3  show  that 
the  district  (ungraded)  schools  do  not  fully  prepare  for  admission,  the  nega- 
tive replies  being  to  the  affirmative  as  four  to  one.  In  the  States  from  which 
the  affirmatives  came,  it  was  generally  noticeable  that  the  requirements  for 

*  It  should  be  remembered  that  not  all  the  questions  were  answered  in  each  report,  though  the  re- 
ports are  very  complete. 


8  NATIONAL    COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

admission  were  about  the  same  as  those  for  a  teacher's  certificate  of  the 
lowest  grade. 

If  a  single  State  in  the  Union  has  a  system  of  city  high  schools,  the  fact 
has  escaped  the  notice  of  your  committee.  Even  where  some  intelligent 
effort  has  been  made  to  grade  the  district  schools  and  unify  their  work,  the 
cities  have  apparently  gone  on  their  own  way,  the  "  way "  being  right  in 
their  own  eyes,  at  least.  This  seems  to  be  largely  due  to  the  absence  of 
any  common  standard  —  of  anything  to  grade  to  or  to  grade  by.  It  may 
be  remarked  in  passing,  that  where  no  preparatory  work  is  done  by  the 
State,  the  local  schools  show  stronger  tendencies  toward  unity  and  harmo- 
nious action. 

Tuition  in  city  high  schools  is  generally  free  to  all  resident  children.  In 
a  very  few  instances,  reports  mention  slight  fees  for  instruction  in  languages. 
The  number  of  high  schools  "doing  first-class  academic  work,  including 
languages  and  higher  mathematics,"  is  reported  (always  with  reservation) 
by  States  as  follows:  Alabama,  8;  California,  7  (State  Superintendent), 
"  Not  more  than  two  "  (a  report  from  a  member  of  the  faculty  of  the  State 
University)  ;  Colorado,  4 ;  Connecticut,  22 ;  Dakota,  18  ( Secretary  of  Ter- 
ritorial Board  of  Education);  District  of  Columbia,  2;  Florida,  15;  Geor- 
gia, 20  (  probably  including  private  academies) ;  Idaho,  "  Possibly  that  at 
Boise  City " ;  Illinois,  "All  will  claim  this,"  "  From  two-thirds  to  three- 
fourths,"  "Thirteen  give  full  preparation  for  the  freshman  classical  course" 
(State  Superintendent);  Indiana,  "Very  few,"  "Ninety-nine  are  commis- 
sioned by  the  State  Board  to  send  graduates  to  the  State  University" ;  Iowa, 
70;  Kansas,  "The  University  recognizes  sixteen,  with  thirty-one  others  not 
quite  complete  in  course";  Kentucky,  4,  "None,  really,  outside  of  Louis- 
ville"; Maine,  "Nearly  all  city  high  schools";  Maryland,  10;  Massachu- 
setts, "All  in  cities  or  towns  of  more  than  4,000  inhabitants";  Michigan, 
35,  "Twenty,  perhaps,  have  a  full  classical  course";  Minnesota,  30  (State 
Superintendent),  "Sixty-five  city  high  schools  receive  $400  each  per  annum 
from  the  State,  on  condition  of  furnishing  free  tuition  to  non-residents  of 
the  city  " ;  Mississippi,  "  None,"  "  Possibly  50,  including  private  academies  " ; 
Missouri,  "Not  more  than  four";  Montana,  "Really  none";  Nebraska,  10 
to  15 ;  Nevada,  5 ;  New  Hampshire,  "All  city  and  most  town  high  schools" ; 
New  Mexico,  "  Possibly  a  half-dozen  trying,  mostly  parochial  schools  of  the 
mission  class";  New  York,  "All";  Ohio,  "Fifteen,  but  generally  without 
Greek,"  159  (State  Commissioner);*  Oregon,  1;  Rhode  Island,  3;  Teunes- 

*  Explaining  this  apparent  discrepancy,  the  State  Commissioner  of  Ohio  writes:  "There  must  be  a 
difference  in  the  definitions  of  '  first-class  academic  work.'  Inasmuch  as  Ohio  colleges  do  not  require 
Greek  for  admission  to  college  classes,  provided  candidates  can  offer  equivalents  in  other  branches  — 
for  instance,  in  extra  Latin  or  mathematics  —  I  have  not  considered  Greek,  nor  do  I  consider  it  with- 
out these  limitations,  '  essential  to  first-class  academic  work.'  The  schools  I  have  numbered  among 
the  159  all  teach  Latin,  many  of  them  German,  and  all  of  them  physics  and  advanced  mathematics,  by 
which  I  mean  algebra,  geometry,  and  most  of  them  plane  trigonometry.  I  do  not  say  that  all  the 
schools  in  my  enumeration  teach  enough  of  these  to  prepare  pupils  for  entrance  into  college  ( I  am  sure 
a  great  many  of  them  do  not),  but  they  are  doing  work  looking  in  that  direction,  and  work  which  in 
my  opinion  may  be  properly  classed  under  the  head  of  first-class  academic  work." 


HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  9 

see,  "  Possibly  four,  but  Greek,  French  and  German  are  not  taught" ;  Texas, 
possibly  15;  Utah,  "None";  Vermont,  1,  "There  are  27  academies  and  pri- 
vate schools  " ;  Washington,  "  None,  a  recent  legislature  having  enacted  that 
'no  other  language  than  English  nor  mathematics  higher  than  algebra'  shall 
be  taught  in  such  schools";  Wisconsin,  65,  including  all  academies,  "11 
prepare  in  all  courses  for  the  university,  and  34  in  the  modern  classical 
course";*  Wyoming,  "None." 

The  committee  made  an  effort  to  secure  the  sphool  population  of  each  of 
these  States,  but  found  this  to  be  almost  impossible.  However,  a  glance 
will  serve  to  show  how  inadequate  in  nearly  all  the  States  is  the  work  in 
secondary  education,  even  when  regarded  from  the  standpoint  of  quantity 
only. 

As  to  question  eight,  it  may  be  sufficient  to  say  that  the  reports  show  that 
of  the  schools  just  reported,  a  very  large  proportion  are  not  able  to  fully  fit 
for  freshman  classes.  This  is  true  in  every  case  given  above,  where  it  is  not 
specified  that  a  high-school  graduation  is  recognized  by  the  State  university, 
or  other  institutions  of  similar  rank. 

Non-resident  pupils  attending  city  high  schools  are  generally  charged 
fees,  which  seems  natural  and  proper  enough.  The  exceptions  seem  to  be 
Minnesota  (where  the  State  contributes  to  the  support  of  the  city  schools), 
Florida,  Mississippi,  and  Wyoming.  In  these  last  there  seems  to  be  no  set- 
tled principle  —  only  the  fact  that  fees  have  not  yet  been  charged. 

That  non-resident  pupils  are  welcomed,  that  any  special  effort  is  made  to 
attract  them,  seems  much  in  doubt.  There  are  many  correspondents  who 
answer  in  the  affirmative,  but  there  are  more  who  are  guarded.  "  We  can- 
not welcome  them  —  we  are  overcrowded  now."  "  They  are  received  rather 
grudgingly — our  seats  are  full."  "  Few  cities  build  beyond  their  own  needs: 
how  can  they  take  in  others?"  "We  are  not  able  to  build  for  outsiders; 
it  does  not  pay."  "They  are  generally  a  burden  in  more  ways  than  one." 
Such  is  the  tenor  of  a  large  number  of  returns.  Even  in  Minnesota  there 
is  not  sufficient  room,  and  the  proportion  of  those  in  attendance  from  rural 
districts  is  very  small. 

Your  committee  finds  no  State  in  which  cities  are  compelled  to  establish 
high  schools,  except  Massachusetts.  Nor  can  we  find  that  the  rural  popu- 
lation has  any  voice  in  establishing  or  managing  city  high  schools. f 

The  general  status  of  secondary  education  in  the  United  States,  as  gathered 
from  the  reports  and  from  other  sources,  seems  to  be  as  follows : 

Alabama. — No  public  high  schools  recognized  in  the  public-school  system. 
Such  schools  rely  entirely  on  local  support. 

Arizona. — The  territorial  laws  are  silent  on  the  subject  of  high  schools. 

*  Latin  is  the  only  language  required. 

fin  this  connection  should  be  noted  a  somewhat  converse  condition,  i.  e.,  while  county  superin- 
tendents have  no  jurisdiction  in  cities,  the  cities  share  in  their  election,  and  thus  very  generally  de- 
termine the  choice  of  the  highest  official  for  rural  schools,  in  which  the  city  has  no  interest  whatever. 


10  NATIONAL    COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

Arkansas. — Graded  schools  are  provided  in  several  cities  at  public 
expense,  and  a  few  cities  have  high  schools,  but  there  seems  to  be  no  close 
organization,  nor  any  recognition  of  these  as  a  part  of  a  system. 

California. — No  State  school  money  aids  schools  of  higher  than  gram- 
mar grade.  High  schools  exist  in  cities,  sustained  by  special  local  levies. 
The  statute  permits  any  district  to  establish  by  popular  vote  a  grammar 
school,  which  shall  prepare  for  entrance  to  the  scientific  courses  of  the  Uni- 
versity. A  few  such  schools  have  been  established,  but  with  indifferent 
success,  chiefly  because  the  district  constitutes  a  field  too  narrow  from  which 
to  draw  either  pupils  or  support  for  higher  work.  At  the  recent  session  of  the 
State  Legislature  a  bill  was  introduced  to  authorize  counties  to  establish 
county  high  schools.  The  movement  was  regarded  with  much  favor,  but 
your  committee  cannot  learn  the  fate  of  the  measure.  "The  law  should  cer- 
tainly be  mandatory  as  to  one  good  school  in  each  county." 

Colorado. — Cities  are  considered  school  districts,  come  under  the  general 
district  law,  and  thus  receive  their  share  of  public  school  money.  High 
schools  exist  in  the  cities.  The  law  also  permits  two  or  more  contiguous 
rural  districts  to  unite  in  establishing  a  high  school,  but  the  support  must 
come  from  local  levies.  No  such  schools  exist. 

Connecticut. — The  statute  is  simply  permissive  as  to  town  schools  of  grade 
higher  than  elementary.  Such  schools  have  been  very  generally  established. 
Dr.  Henry  Barnard  writes:  "There  are  some  general  advantages  connected 
with  a  wider  constituency  for  secondary  education  —  such  as  the  mere  fact 
of  students  leaving  rural  homes  for  the  larger  life  and  different  surround- 
ings of  a  city  or  town.  ...  A  very  eminent  teacher  in  Massachusetts, 
just  about  a  hundred  years  ago,  proposed  a  system  of  county  academies 
(aided  by  public  grants,  and  being  about  the  same  thing  as  a  county  high 
school)  as  being  indirectly  the  very  best  institutions  for  fitting  school-mas- 
ters. It  was  in  this  form  also  that  Professor  Olmstead  made  the  earliest 
suggestion  (1816)  for  an  academy  for  school-masters  in  Connecticut.  .  .  . 
About  1846,  in  an  address  delivered  at  Chicago  before  the  Northwestern 
Educational  Convention,  I,  myself,  touched  incidentally  on  this  very  point 
in  the  assertion  that  if,  in  the  State  system,  we  were  not  to  have  a  high  school 
in  every  city  (or  town),  we  ought  at  least  to  have  one  in  every  county,  which 
would  give  certain  special  advantages  over  any  mere  local  high  school." 

Dakota. — The  statute  is  permissive,  and  high  schools  may  be  established  in 
townships  subject  to  decision  of  the  resident  voters.  As  a  condition  prece- 
dent, there  must  be  four  or  more  properly-equipped  rural  schools,  and  an 
assessment  of  $200,000. 

Delaware. — The  State  makes  no  provision,  but  some  cities  maintain  high 
schools. 

District  of  Columbia. — The  federal  school  system  includes  high  schools. 

Florida. — County  boards  are  authorized  to  open  high  schools  wherever 
the  condition  of  education  requires  them. 


HIGHEB  EDUCATION  OF  THE  BUBAL  POPULATION.  11 

Georgia. — The  State  law  makes  no  provision,  but  some  cities  maintain 
high  schools,  "  really  the  result  of  private  enterprise." 

Idaho. — Statute  is  permissive  as  to  cities,  but  no  other  reference  is  made 
to  high  schools  or  secondary  education. 

Illinois. — School  boards  in  incorporated  cities  and  villages  are  con- 
structively authorized  to  establish  high  schools,  and  school  townships  may 
have  them  by  popular  vote.  Only  ten  such  schools  have  been  established, 
and  two  of  these  have  been  discontinued.  Our  correspondents  generally 
agree  that  the  township  is  too  narrow  a  field  from  which  to  draw  pupils  and 
support  for  a  good  high  school;  though  other  reasons  —  lack  of  interest  in 
higher  education,  local  jealousies  between  country  and  village,  etc. — are 
also  assigned. 

Indiana. — The  statute  permits  township  trustees  to  establish  graded 
schools.  Many  such  schools  have  been  established,  and  when  in  densely 
populated  townships,  with  at  least  fair  success.  But  again  our  correspond- 
ents agree  with  quite  remarkable  unanimity,  that  the  average  rural  town- 
ship is  too  narrow  a  field  from  which  to  either  draw  pupils  or  support  for  a 
school  of  really  high  grade.  "A  school  above  the  district  school  yet  organ- 
ically connected  with  it,  must  prove  a  great  impetus  to  both  pupil  and 
teacher.  The  trouble  now  is  that  students  in  district  schools  have  no  idea 
of  more  advanced  work;  think  that  the  common  school  is  sufficient.  The 
high  school  is  a  sure  and  necessary  corrective  of  this.  I  do  not  see  how  it 
can  be  successfully  maintained  in  rural  townships.  The  West  at  least 
needs  good  county  high  schools." 

Indian  Territory. — No  report. 

Iowa. — The  statute  is  permissive  as  to  both  county  and  township  high 
schools.  Guthrie  county  has  a  county  high  school  which  is  reported  as  suc- 
cessful. A  letter  from  the  superintendent  of  that  county  gives  the  following 
reasons  why  the  school  meets  with  recognition  and  approval : 

1.  It  helps  keep  up  among  the  people  a  high  estimate  of  the  value  of 
education. 

2.  It  is  the  connecting  link  between  the  common  school  and  the  college. 

3.  It  is  the  head  of  the  school  system  of  the  county,  and  is  a  constant 
incentive  to  better  work  below. 

4.  It  educates  a  large  number  of  teachers  for  the  country  schools. 
There  seem  to  be  but  few  township  schools,  and  these  are  generally  graded 

schools  and  not  high  schools.  The  usual  reason  is  given  for  the  practical 
failure  of  this  position  of  the  statute,  "the  township  is  too  narrow  a  field." 
Kansas. — The  statute  is  permissive  as  to  county  high  schools  and  union 
district  graded  schools.  City  high  schools  are  maintained  by  the  usual 
local  levies.  Several  attempts  have  been  made  to  establish  county  high 
schools,  but  they  have  generally  failed  because  of  local  jealousies  in  select- 
ing the  location.  Dickinson  county,  however,  has  established  a  county  high 
school  at  Chapman.  An  unusually  commodious  building  has  been  erected, 


12  NATIONAL   COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

and  the  school  opens  in  September.  The  interest  taken  in  this  movement 
by  the  rural  schools  is  great,  and  the  beneficial  effects  in  the  way  of  stimu- 
lus to  proper  grading  of  all  country  schools  and  increased  ambition  and 
activity  on  the  part  of  the  district  school  teachers  have  been  manifest  from 
the  day  the  ground  was  broken  for  the  foundation  of  the  new  building. 
"  If  every  city  or  town  is  not  compelled  to  maintain  a  high  school  and  open 
it  freely  to  students  from  the  rural  districts,  then  there  should  be  a  county 
high  school  offering  special  opportunities  and  inducements  to  such  pupils." 

Kentucky. — Cities  and  towns  maintaining  a  system  of  common  schools 
are  considered  school  districts,  and  thus  receive  their  share  of  State  money. 
Some  cities  have  established  high  schools.  The  statute  seems  to  be  silent 
on  this  point. 

Louisiana. — No  report. 

~Maine. — The  statute  is  permissive,  and  a  large  number  of  towns  have 
high  schools.  The  State  duplicates  the  amount  expended  by  each  town  to 
the  extent  of  $250.  There  is  no  systematic  relation  between  these  and  the 
district  schools,  each  often  infringing  on  the  proper  work  of  the  other. 

Maryland. — The  school  system  includes  county  and  district  high  schools, 
and  these  are  more  or  less  complete  in  each  county.  In  referring  to  those 
which  have  been  "successful,"  our  correspondents  mention  the  county  schools 
only.  State  aid  is  also  granted  to  some  extent  to  some  sixteen  academies. 

Massachusetts. — Any  town  may  establish  a  school  for  instruction  in  higher 
English  branches.  Towns  with  500  families  must  have  such  schools,  includ- 
ing ordinary  high-school  branches.  Towns  of  4,000  and  upward  must  add 
instruction  in  Greek,  French,  astronomy,  geology,  rhetoric,  logic,  intellect- 
ual and  moral  science,  and  political  economy. 

Michigan. — The  law  permits  city  schools  and  union  district  graded 
schools.  An  effort  is  being  made  to  adopt  the  township  system,  with  an 
enabling  act  for  establishing  township  high  schools. 

Minnesota. — The  boards  of  education  of  any  city,  town,  or  village  of  500 
population  or  more  may  establish  such  grades  of  school  as  seem  expedient. 
There  is  a  State  high-school  board,  which  controls  the  appropriation  of 
State  aid  granted  certain  city  high  schools  on  condition  of  instruction  fur- 
nished non-residents  free ;  but  not  more  than  five  schools  can  be  so  aided  in 
any  county  in  the  same  year. 

Mississippi. — The  report  is  indefinite,  but  refers  to  preparatory  depart- 
ment of  State  University  in  such  a  way  as  to  lead  to  the  inference  that  this 
is  the  only  preparatory  work  provided  by  statute. 

Missouri. — Cities,  towns  and  villages  organize  as  school  districts,  and 
schools  of  higher  grade  may  be  established.  No  such  schools  exist  outside 
of  cities. 

Montana. — No  report. 

Nebraska. — The  statute  permits  the  district  board  of  any  district  of  more 
than  150  children  of  school  age  to  establish  a  high  school,  subject  to  a  vote 
of  the  people.  No  worthy  secondary  schools  reported  outside  of  cities. 


HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  13 

Nevada. — A  village,  town,  or  incorporated  city  constitutes  a  school  dis- 
trict, and  high  schools  may  be  established  "  wherever  funds  are  sufficient  to 
sustain  them." 

New  Hampshire. — If  two-thirds  of  voters  so  agree,  any  town  or  district 
having  100  children  6-16  years  of  age,  may  establish  a  high  school.  Such 
schools  have  been  established,  and  have  been  successful. 

New  Jersey. — The  statute  seems  permissive  only. 

New  Mexico. — "  Our  Territory  has  no  high  schools,  and  no  system  of  pub- 
lic schools  worthy  of  name.  There  are  but  three  months  in  the  year  of  free 
schools,  and  these  of  the  poorest  order.  After  a  three-years  experience  in 
a  township  school  in  Indiana,  as  a  matter  of  personal  opinion  I  am  strongly 
in  favor  of  county  high  schools." 

New  York. — The  law  authorizes  union  district  schools,  and  permits  these 
to  adopt  academies  which  are  within  the  district  as  academical  departments. 
The  State  assists  such  departments  by  direct  appropriations.  "  The  rural 
district  schools  are  entirely  independent  of  each  other,  and  of  any  higher 
school  whatever.  The  only  promotion  within  reach  of  a  pupil* in  these  pub- 
lic schools  is  offered  by  the  regents  of  the  University,  who  provide  that  at 
the  regular  examinations  in  the  academies,  pupils  from  the  public  schools 
may  be  admitted  and  examined  along  with  the  scholars  in  the  academies; 
and  if  successful,  they  may  secure  the  same  'pass  cards/  certificates,  or  even 
diplomas,  as  are  granted  to  academic  scholars.  From  the  nature  of  the  case, 
however,  but  few  seek  such  opportunity  beyond  the  preliminary  branches, 
and  probably  none  beyond  what  is  known  as  the  intermediate." 

North  Carolina. — The  State  law  apparently  makes  no  provision  whatever 
for  higher  instruction,  except  that  in  townships  of  5,000  inhabitants  or  more 
graded  schools  may  be  established ;  but  the  tax  for  their  support  is  not  to 
exceed  one-tenth  of  one  per  cent,  and  30  cents  poll. 

Ohio. — The  statute  simply  permits  the  establishment  of  high  schools  at 
the  discretion  of  each  board  of  education.  A  few  such  schools  have  been 
established  in  rural  districts,  and  are  reported  as  successful.* 

Oregon. — In  districts  with  1,000  or  more  children  of  school  age,  high 
schools  must  be  maintained  at  least  six  months  in  each  year. 

Pennsylvania. — The  statute  permits  district  directors  at  their  discretion 
to  establish  schools  of  different  grades,  and  under  this,  city  high  schools  have 
become  very  general. 

Rhode  Island. — School  districts  or  union  districts  may  establish  schools 
of  higher  grades. 

South  Carolina. — The  law  seems  silent. 

Tennessee. — Township  boards  may  establish  schools  of  higher  grade,  and 
some  such  schools  have  been  created.  There  has  been  but  indifferent  suc- 
cess; "the  territory  is  too  small,"  and  "rural  school  boards  have  not  'busi- 
ness '  enough  to  work  this  plan." 

*  As  to  city  high  schools,  see  page  8  of  this  report. 


14  NATIONAL   COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

Texas. — No  provision  for  county  or  township  high  schools.  The  last  State 
Superintendent's  report  urges  the  establishment  of  county  high  schools. 
Four  leagues  of  land  were  granted  for  this  purpose  to  each  county  in  the 
State  by  the  ante-bellum  constitution,  but  the  reconstructed  constitution  di- 
verted these  lands  to  the  support  of  the  common  schools. 

Utah. — Districts  having  a  population  of  1,200  or  more  may  by  popular 
vote  establish  graded  schools.  Pupils  under  18  years  of  age  cannot  be  ad- 
mitted. 

Vermont. — The  law  permits  the  establishment  of  central  graded  schools 
in  villages  and  towns,  but  outside  of  towns  no  response  has  been  made  to 
such  permission. 

Virginia. — District  boards  may  provide  higher  instruction,  with  consent 
of  county  school  board.  A  few  such  schools  have  been  established,  but 
with  very  little  success.  "Territory  too  small  from  which  to  draw  pupils  or 
support." 

Washington  Territory. — The  law  does  not  recognize  schools  in  which 
languages  other  than  English  or  mathematics  higher  than  algebra  are  taught. 

West  Virginia. — No  report. 

Wisconsin. — Districts  may  establish  high  schools,  and  maintaining  these 
not  less  than  three  months  are  entitled  to  receive  from  the  State  half  the 
amount  actually  expended  for  instruction  in  higher  branches.  Only  four 
such  schools  are  reported  in  operation. 

Wyoming. — The  statute  is  permissive  as  to  city  high  schools,  and  grants 
school  boards  in  rural  districts  the  same  power.  No  such  schools  have 
been  established  outside  cities. 

There  is  very  general  agreement  among  our  correspondents  that  second- 
ary or  academic  schools  should  be  so  provided  by  the  State  as  to  offer  every 
opportunity  and  inducement  to  pupils  from  rural  districts ;  that  this  work 
should  not  be  left  to  the  chance  of  city  building  and  city  providing  ( this 
expression  was  unanimous),  but  that  the  people  of  the  rural  districts  should 
have  legislative  permission  and  incentive  to  make  the  necessary  provision. 
The  few  who  disagree  to  these  propositions  are  generally  those  from  older 
and  more  densely  populated  States,  where  the  highest  form  of  educational 
work  done  directly  under  State  aid  and  supervision  is  academic,  and  where 
large  towns  are  many  in  number  and  but  short  distances  apart. 

Among  other  assenting  and  dissenting  voices,  the  following  may  be  quoted  : 
"I  do  not  believe  in  State  aid  in  secondary  education  unless  pupils  are  to 
be  granted  manual  training."  "  It  is  simply  absurd  to  establish  a  university, 
the  crowning  feature  of  a  State  system,  and  then  fail  to  provide  secondary 
schools  accessible  to  all  classes  of  students."  "There  is  no  more  reason 
why  secondary  education  should  be  in  fee  schools  and  dependent  on  the 
chance  provision  of  cities,  than  that  primary  instruction  should  be  managed 
in  this  way."  "  The  town  system  is  better  in  our  New  England  States,  but 
the  West  needs  county  high  schools."  "I  think  the  chance  of  city  building, 


HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  15 

etc.,  is  better  at  present  than  the  chance  of  county  building.  I  would  give 
the  people  of  the  rural  districts  the  chance,  however."  "  Bring  the  elementary 
schools  to  a  first-class  grade  first,  then  give  us  the  rural  high  school."  "  We 
should  have  the  county  high  school,  with  a  mandatory  law."  "As  a  rule  I 
think  the  city  high  schools  are  sufficient.  It  is  the  cost  of  board,  and  not  of 
tuition,  that  keeps  children  out  of  these  schools."  "  We  think  our  county 
high  school  a  profitable  investment.  It  is  to  us  what  the  State  Normal  is  to 
the  State.  Over  200  of  the  young  people  of  the  county  attend  the  school  at 
some  time  during  each  year.  A  majority  of  our  teachers  attend  it  before 
they  teach,  or  while  they  are  teaching.  The  school  does  more  for  us  directly 
and  positively  than  all  the  colleges  of  the  State.  Many  of  our  young  people 
attend  some  college  after  graduating  from  here,  who  would  never  have  done 
so  had  they  not  received  the  inspiration  at  the  county  high  school.  It  is  true 
it  takes  the  bright  pupils  from  our  country  schools  occasionally,  and  weakens 
the  school  at  the  time,  but  a  desire  is  awakened  in  those  that  remain  to  fol- 
low, which  more  than  supplies  the  loss.  A  county  high  school  properly 
managed  will  do  much  for  a  county  by  raising  the  standard  of  the  teachers." 
"  In  Illinois,  I  see  no  reason  why  the  county,  not  the  State,  should  not  pro- 
vide at  the  county  seat  a  public  school  of  high  grade,  in  precisely  the  same 
way  that  it  provides  a  court  house,  a  jail,  etc.  The  county  commissioners 
could  do  all  necessary  legislation,  under  suitable  State  laws."  "  There  should 
be  county  high  schools,  but  only  as  supplementing  township  graded  (or  high) 
schools."  "A  high  school  will  in  my  opinion  always  have  community  sup- 
port only,  certainly  very  little  other  worth  mentioning.  I  therefore  favor 
the  township  or  joint  township  high  school.  The  State  should  aid  in  the 
support  of  such  schools."  '*'!  do  not  believe  in  furnishing  secondary  edu- 
cation by  the  State,  etc.,  because  I  do  not  think  enough  of  our  poorer  classes 
avail  themselves  of  the  privileges  of  free  higher  education  to  compensate  for 
the  extra  taxation.  Besides,  it  educates  people  beyond  their  natural  posi- 
tion in  society."  "  I  believe  in  the  township  high  schools,  but  they  can  only 
be  maintained  by  aid  from  the  State  to  the  extent,  say,  of  one  third  or  one- 
half  their  entire  expense."  "I  cannot  indorse  free  secondary  schools;  the 
burden  of  the  necessary  taxation  would  be  too  oppressive."  "  Only  the  town 
high  school  can  be  that  most  desirable  thing — a  home  school.  Just  as  soon 
as  a  student  leaves  home,  it  is  to  attend  a  boarding-school,  no  matter  what 
the  name."  "  The  city  high  schools  really  do  not  touch  our  rural  people  at 
all.  Everyone  knows  that.  We  need  the  county  high  school,  supported 
and  controlled  by  the  people  who  use  it."  "  The  county  high  school  is  an 
imperative  necessity."  "The  distance  limitation  tells  against  city  high 
schools,  especially  in  large  cities ;  and  this  would  tell  against  county  high 
schools."  "  Let  us  have  the  county  high  school.  Education  is  cheaper  than 
a  standing  army."  "  I  have  never  yet  seen  a  well-equipped  and  well-taught 
township  (rural)  high  school." 

Our  correspondents  cannot  see  that   legislation  looking  towards  either 


16  NATIONAL   COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

county  or  township  high  schools  need  affect  the  city  high  schools  already 
existing,  or  prevent  others  from  being  established  as  rapidly  as  needed. 
City  high  schools  are  wholly  local,  and  naturally  come  entirely  under  the 
municipal  law.  The  community  in  which  any  school  of  high  grade  is  lo- 
cated is  always  the  ready  recipient  of  its  advantages ;  but  those  who  have 
answered  the  question  touching  this  matter  do  not  believe  that  this  would 
be  true  in  any  special  or  unusual  degree  of  a  county  school.  All  institutions 
of  learning  must  exist  somewhere  in  space;  and  the  thought  (or  argument) 
of  local  benefit  as  applied  to  county  schools  seems  rather  tenuous.  Yet 
your  committee  agree  with  a  correspondent  who  wrote  that  "it  will  require 
care  and  watchfulness  on  the  part  of  trustees  to  prevent  any  appearance  of 
absorption  by  the  locality,  which  might  be  fatal  to  the  best  interests  of  the 
school."  To  the  last  question  there  has  been  but  one  answer,  an  emphatic 
"No."  There  is  no  State  system  which  includes  only  the  primary  work; 
abandons  the  secondary  schools  to  cities — and  secures  no  uniformity  in  these, 
leaving  them  to  shift  for  themselves  under  temporary  and  local  influence, 
and  with  no  connection  with  the  lower;  and  either  does  nothing  in  the  way 
of  higher  training,  or  establishes  a  so-called  university,  in  which  funds  de- 
signed for  college  training  are  spent  in  elementary  work,  or  else  the  institu- 
tion is  on  stilts,  almost  wholly  separated  from  the  great  mass  of  the  people, 
for  whose  benefit  it  was  primarily  intended.  All  our  correspondents  recog- 
nize the  "educational  ladder"  as  the  ideal  system,  to  be  kept  constantly  in 
view  as  a  correct  standard,  and  an  attainable  one ;  and  several  wisely  sug- 
gest, that  though  there  may  be  a  half-truth  and  a  seeming  wisdom  in  calling 
first  for  the  primary  schools  and  these  of  superior  quality,  the  higher  work 
is  absolutely  essential  to  the  well-being  of  the  lower.  They  agree  with  the 
well-known  saying  of  Metternich :  "All  reforms  begin  at  the  top."  Atten- 
tion is  also  called  to  the  fact,  that  judged  from  the  standpoint  of  a  tangible, 
practical,  every-day  life,  the  higher  studies  are  more  valuable  than  the 
lower. 

From  the  "Remarks"  we  make  a  few  extracts.  "The  'educational 
ladder'  in  this  State  was  left  so  very  weak  in  the  middle  that  it  broke  en- 
tirely in  two  some  years  ago.  The  result  is  that  both  ends  are  growing 
weaker  and  more  inefficient  every  year."  "  Every  child  of  school  age  should 
be  able  to  see  clearly  and  follow  with  the  minimum  of  sacrifice  and  the 
maximum  of  incentive  the  path  from  the  primary  schools  to  the  close  of  a 
university  course.  The  State  owes  this  to  its  children  —  but  more  than  this, 
it  owes  it  to  itself  as  a  matter  of  self-preservation."  "A  complete  system, 
as  suggested  by  the  '  ladder '  question,  is  a  necessity  in  every  State  —  if  merely 
as  a  standard  and  assurance  of  continued  general  education."  "To  know 
the  beginning  and  end  of  learning,  one  must  certainly  know  that  which  lies 
between."  "It  seems  to  me  that  the  'ladder'  system  is  not  wanted,  and  is 
really  harmful,  when  we  think  that  the  average  person  has  little  or  no  use 
for  university  training.  One  fault  or  trouble  of  to-day  is  that  so  many  are 


HIQHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  17 

'educated'  above  the  plane  on  which  nature  intended  them  to  move.  In- 
stead of  being  a  successful  farmer  or  mechanic,  many,  by  a  smattering  of 
a  university  knowledge,  are  spoiled.  The  new  Northwest  contains  many  of 
such  'educational'  tramps  and  'educational'  nobodies,  whom  a  good  com- 
mon-school education  left  in  a  condition  to  succeed  in  the  middle  walks  of 
life ;  but  the  university  has  spoiled  them  forever,  because  they  are  no  longer 
willing  to  occupy  ' middle  ground,'  and  are  incapable  of  anything  higher."* 
"The  Minnesota  plan  has  very  decided  merits,  I  think.  Instead  of  estab- 
lishing a  new  high  school  in  the  county,  substantial  encouragement  is  given 
to  those  already  in  existence,  which  do  a  prescribed  amount  of  work  and 
make  tuition  free.  This  concentrates  the  efforts  on  fewer  localities,  and 
guarantees  better  results.  There  are  many  counties  where  high  schools  are 
so  numerous  that  it  would  be  altogether  superfluous  to  attempt  the  estab- 
lishment of  more.  I  doubt  if  it  would  be  practicable  to  have  a  school  in 
any  place  in  this  county  outside  the  city.  If,  however,  some  of  the  villages 
outside  should  undertake  it  under  the  Minnesota  plan,  these  schools  might 
be  helped,  and  many  who  could  not  attend  school  in  the  city  might  be  able 
to  attend  these  other  schools.  It  is  evident  that  special  legislation  would 
be  necessary  in  almost  every  State  to  make  this  kind  of  school  a  success. 
It  would  require  a  proper  board  of  directors,  and  provisions  which  are  not 
found  in  the  statutes  of  most  of  the  States.  In  the  large  and  sparsely-set- 
tled counties  of  the  newer  States,  a  county  school  of  this  kind  might  be  made 
a  greatjagency  in  higher  education ;  and  for  these  new  counties  the  sugges- 
tion seems  to  me  one  of  great  value,  and  entirely  practicable.  I  am  much 
impressed  with  the  excellence  of  the  Minnesota  plan."  "I  accept  the  'lad- 
der' theory,  but  the  secondary  schools  must  be  more  than  mere  fitting- 
schools  ;  they  must  keep  in  mind  the  needs  of  the  large  number  who  cannot 
do  higher  work."  "A  State  university  worthy  of  the  name  must  imply  a 
system  of  high  schools,  under  State  supervision,  near  the  people,  and  espe- 
cially the  rural  people,  who  not  only  sadly  neglect  their  own  interests,  but 
have  always  been  sadly  neglected  by  the  State."  "  We  have  no  State  sys- 
tem in  the  United  States,  with  very  rare  exceptions;  only  collections  of 
local  systems,  which  generally  have  very  little  real  system  even  there." 
"If  there  was  as  little  system  in  the  business  world  as  in  the  educational 
world,  there  would  be  universal  bankruptcy  in  sixty  days."  "  There  should 
be  full  and  complete  provision  for  the  preparation  of  all  for  the  university, 
if  simply  to  surely  give  the  one  in  one  thousand  the  coveted  opportunity." 
"The  connecting  link  is  as  'missing'  in  our  educational  system  as  in  Dar- 
winism." "Few  would  climb  that  ladder  in  any  event.  That  end  of  the 
ladder  which  is  in  the  'gutter'  is  the  one  more  nearly  connected  with  the 

*This  is  an  old  story  — argument  it  can  scarcely  be  called.  The  position  has  been  traversed  again 
and  again.  It  requires  some  courage  to-day  to  announce  that  the  "tramp  scholar"  is  a  tramp  because 
of  the  schools.  If  in.  very  exceptional  cases  this  is  true,  it  is  evidently  not  the  fault  of  the  system,  but 
of  some  individual  school  or  teacher.  The  "tramp  scholar"  of  a  later  life  will  generally  prove  to  have 
been  but  a  "tramp  pupil"  earlier  in  life. 


18  NATIONAL   COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

people,  and  the  one  which  should  receive  our  undivided  attention  and  con- 
stant vigilance.  If  the  first  years  of  school-life  are  firmly  rooted  in  intel- 
ligence, patriotism,  and  self-respect,  the  university  will  not  suffer,  neither 
will  our  Government,  from  the  ignorance  of  its  people;  but  let  every  round 
be  complete,  if  possible."  "  One  of  the  greatest  needs  of  the  present  and 
of  the  future  is  what  I  shall  call  by  the  unfitting  name,  'gutter  schools/ 
i.  e.,  a  system  (it  ought  to  be  a  'system')  of  schools  to  do  middle-grade 
work  in  a  brief  space  of  time  after  pupils  learn  to  read  —  to  teach  them 
while  they  can  be  in  school  an  outline  of  what  they  will  use  when  grown. 
The  '  county  high  school '  is  in  many  places  a  sort  of  separated  and  separat- 
ing institution,  giving  a  higher  education  to  many  who  could  not  attain  to 
its  grade  otherwise;  'gutter  schools'  would  serve  a  similar,  yet  more  valua- 
ble, purpose  in  educating  such  as  attend  school  for  a  brief  period  only  of 
their  'school  years.'  I  believe  in  educating  a  little  as  heartily  as  in  educat- 
ing much.  County  high  schools  serve  as  one  round  of  Huxley's  ladder,  but 
they  serve  a  nobler  (if  not  a  better)  end,  by  giving  many  a  'higher'  educa- 
tion than  they  could  otherwise  obtain.  We  need  width  more  than  we  need 
height  in  our  educational  work  in  America  at  present.  Our  systems  are 
fairly  perfect  where  they  work  under  favorable  conditions;  but  the  academy 
is  a  thing  of  the  past,  and  the  graded  school  is  becoming  too  attenuated  and 
long-drawn-out  for  the  laboring  poor  of  the  masses;  hence,  we  more  and 
more  need  county  (country)  high  schools  and  the  city  and  country  '  gutter 
schools.'" 

Your  committee  feels  that  the  evidence  collected  shows  that  — 

I.  The  State  systems  are  still  very  generally  partial  and  chaotic. 

II.  For  all  secondary  education,  the  mass  of  the  rural  population  is  gen- 
erally dependent  upon  chance,  or  the  favor  of  some  city. 

III.  With  few  exceptions  no  opportunities  or  inducements  worthy  of  the 
name  in  the  way  of  secondary  or  higher  education  are  offered  the  rural  pop- 
ulation. 

IV.  Where  efforts  in  the  way  of  systematic  secondary  education  have  been 
reported  as  made,  outside  of  cities  and  towns,  but  are  not  and  cannot  be 
considered  as  even  fairly  successful,  it  is  because  — 

1.  They  are  too  limited  as  to  territory,  population,  and  resources;  or, 

2.  The  organization  is  not  sufficiently  close  and  complete  —  there  being 
too  much  irregularity  in  the  work  of  the  lower  schools;  or, 

3.  The  people  of  the  rural  districts  have  no  voice  in  the  management  and 
control  of  such  schools,  and  hence  indifference  takes  the  place  of  interest. 

From  the  facts  as  thus  reported,  your  committee  considers  the  following 
to  be  legitimate  conclusions  or  suggestions : 

I.  The  district  or  rural  schools  should  be  graded. 

II.  To  grade  successfully  there  must  be  some  standard  to  which  to  grade  — 
some  point  which  will  limit  and  define  the  work. 


HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  19 

III.  This  limit  should  be  the  lowest  class  recognized  under  secondary 
education. 

IV.  Secondary  education  should  have  the  same  general  characteristics 
that  have  given  primary  education  its  strength  and  its  hold  upon  our  peo- 
ple: 

(a)  The  schools  should  be  free  schools  and  not  fee  schools. 
(6)  The  schools  should  be  as  near  as  possible  the  homes  of  those  to  whom 
they  minister. 

(c)  Those  whose  children  are  to  receive  the  benefit  of  this  instruction 
should  participate  in  the  control  and  management  of  these  schools. 

(d)  The  establishment  and  maintenance  of  such  schools  should  not  be 
haphazard,  a  matter  of  accident  or  convenience  merely;   but  should  be 
fixed,  sure,  and  systematic. 

V.  As  it  is  an  admitted  fact  that  only  a  small  per  cent,  of  those  who 
reach  these  schools  can  ever  pass  beyond  them,  the  secondary  schools  should 
combine  good  academic  training  with  work  which  is  more  strictly  prepara- 
tory. 

[NOTE. — It  should  be  understood  that  a  model  secondary  school  will  give  at  least 
such  instruction  that  its  graduates  can  enter  the  freshman  class  of  colleges  of  good 
standing.  It  ought  to  do  more  than  this.] 

VI.  The  secondary  schools  should  in  turn  grade  up  to  the  lowest  class  in 
the  university  of  the  State  in  which  they  are  situated — if  such  an  institu- 
tion exists.     If  higher  education  is  not  a  part  of  the  State  system,  then  the 
secondary  schools  should  grade  up  to  the  best  academic  standard  that  the 
people  can  be  urged 'to  accept. 

VII.  In  establishing  secondary  schools  the  natural  order  seems  to  be: 
(a)  In  new  and  in  sparsely-settled  States  or  counties  —  the  county  high 

school. 

(6)  As  cities  come  into  existence,  the  city  high  school  in  addition  to  that 
of  the  county. 

(c)  As  the  rural  population  grows  more  dense,  the  township  or  union  dis- 
trict graded  school  with  courses  which  lead  up  to  the  county  high  school, 
the  grade  of  which  can  then  be  advanced. 

[NOTE. — There  are  comparatively  few  States  in  the  Union  in  which  township  or 
union  district  high  schools  can  be  successfully  maintained.] 

VIII.  Statute  law  should  be  mandatory  to  the  extent  of  securing  at  least 
one  high  school  of  high  grade  in  each  county. 

IX.  It  should  be  permissive  as  to  cities  and  townships,  at  least  within  cer- 
tain pretty  broad  limits  of  population ;  but  when  such  schools  are  estab- 
lished, they  should  come  under  laws  which  will  secure  some  uniformity  in 
courses  of  study  —  though  not  necessarily  in  the  extent  of  such  courses  — 
and  in  general  management. 

X.  A  State  system  worthy  of  the  name  will  freely  offer  every  opportunity 


20  NATIONAL    COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

and  inducement  to  its  entire  school  population  to  pass,  by  systematic  methods, 
easily  apprehended  by  those  who  are  to  receive  the  benefits,  and  under  pop- 
ular control,  from  the  lowest  seat  in  the  primary  school  to  graduation  by  a 
college  or  university  of  high  standing. 

[NOTE. — The  following  memoranda  were  indorsed  on  the  original  report,  and  are 
printed  to  avoid  any  color  of  "suppression  of  opinion:"] 

Would  it  be  possible  to  limit  the  work  of  a  large  city  high  school  to  the 
standard  of  a  county  high  school,  or  town  high  school  ? — Baker. 

If  possible,  not  just. — Jones. 

It  is  sometimes  a  crime  to  urge  a  pupil  to  further  pursue  ideal  education. 
— Baker. 

Ideal  education  calls  for  ideal  pupils. — Jones. 

Can  provision  be  suggested  whereby  in  small  counties  containing  large 
cities  the  rural  population  shall  have  a  right  to  attend  the  city  high  school? 
This  would  of  course  require  certain  State  interference. — Jam.es. 

In  not  a  few  cases  the  city  is  the  convenient  business  and  educational  focus 
of  the  county.  In  such  cases  the  county  and  the  city  should  be  in  close  sym- 
pathy.— Jones. 


DISCUSSION. 


(REPORTED  BY  ROBERT  ALLYN.) 

W.  E.  SHELDON,  of  Massachusetts :  I  hope  the  committee  will  be  allowed 
the  usual  privilege  of  being  catechised. 

Mr.  Canfield  took  the  chair  to  answer  queries. 

MR.  SHELDON:  I  believe  in  "free,  not  in  fee  schools."  How  can  these  be 
secured  in  counties  of  large  areas  and  sparse  populations? 

MR.  CANFIELD  :  The  simple  question  is  this :  What  are  you  going  to  do 
for  the  people  in  these  large  counties,  in  these  sparsely-settled  counties,  in 
the  way  of  secondary  education?  Are  you  willing  to  do  anything?  In  the 
condition  which  you  presuppose,  there  are  no  cities.  Shall  the  people  of 
these  counties  have  opportunity  and  incentive  for  secondary  education,  and 
through  that  for  higher  education?  If  so,  shall  they  be  compelled  to  await 
the  chances  of  city-building,  which  at  its  best  gives  them  no  recognized  or 
legal  status?  If  not,  shall  they  have  the  legal  right  to  organize  and  support 
a  secondary  school  of  their  own  ?  The  details  of  such  a  movement  are  not 
in  question  here  now. 

MR.  SHELDON:  But  why  do  you  speak  of  counties,  rather  than  of  other 
civil  divisions? 

MR.  CANFIELD  :  The  committee  refers  to  the  county  because  in  a  large 
number  of  States  it  is  a  recognized  and  useful  political  unit ;  and  especially 
because  it  is  the  political  unit  next  above  the  township ;  and  our  correspond- 


HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  21 

ents  are  almost  unanimous  in  the  expression  that  the  average  township  does 
not  furnish  resources  or  pupils  enough  to  make  a  successful  high  school. 
This  requires  density  of  population  and  accumulation  of  financial  resources, 
which  cannot  be  expected  in  the  townships  of  a  vast  majority  of  States  for 
years  to  come. 

S.  S.  PARR,  of  Indiana:  Forty  years  ago  there  were  systems  of  county 
academies  —  public  schools  —  in  our  State.  These  started  in  many  of  the 
large  towns;  but  denominational  schools  started  as  rivals,  and  later,  with 
some  town  high  schools  trying  to  supplement  the  free  schools,  almost  drove 
the  academies  out  of  existence.  The  trend  in  education  now  is  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  township,  rather  than  county  schools.  It  is  doubtful  whether  it 
is  best  to  recommend  the  latter. 

MR.  CANFIELD:  At  the  time  of  which  the  gentleman  speaks  —  thirty  or 
forty  years  ago — our  school  system  as  a  system  was  in  its  infancy.  It  was 
just  struggling  into  existence  and  recognition,  very  generally  against  the 
influence  of  private  and  sectarian  schools.  It  is  not  at  all  surprising,  there- 
fore, that  a  system  of  county  academies  should  be,  as  the  gentleman  said, 
"  choked  out  by  private  and  denominational  schools."  But  the  fact  proves 
nothing  as  to  the  present.  The  township  and  city  high  schools  came  in 
later,  as  did  the  gentleman's  referenced  them.  They  held  the  ground  in 
such  a  way,  that  the  question  of  secondary  education  has  not  gone  back  in  a 
vital  way  to  the  people  of  the  rural  districts  —  and  to-day  a  valued  corre- 
spondent in  Indiana  writes  "two-thirds  of  the  people,  in  the  rural  districts  in 
this  State,  have  neither  opportunity  nor  incentive  for  secondary  education." 

MR.  PARR  (referring  to  a  remark  by  a  member) :  Indiana  can  take  care 
of  herself,  and  even  Posey  county.  Denominational  schools  have  injured 
our  city  high  schools,  and  town  free  schools  must  come  to  the  front.  The 
higher  educators  ought  to  find  out  the  natural  trend  of  things,  and  conform 
to  it. 

G.  P.  BROWN,  of  Illinois:  The  educational  system  of  Indiana  grew  from 
the  top — from  the  university.  This  is  historically  true.  The  high  school 
is  needed  to  supplement  the  common  school. 

WM.  A.  MOWRY,  of  Massachusetts :  I  do  not  rise  to  discuss  the  question. 
I  signed  the  report  as  a  member  of  the  committee,  but  question  some  of  its 
suggestions.  I  came  from  a  State  where  there  are  good  town  high  schools. 
The  county  high  schools  must  be  largely  local,  supplying,  in  the  first  place, 
the  wants  of  the  towns  where  they  are  located ;  but  I  do  not  yet  see  how  the 
county  high  school  can  be  more  successful  than  the  town  and  city  high 
schools. 

MR.  CANFIELD  :  The  committee  has  simple  taken  the  facts,  as  reported  to 
it.  The  facts  show  that  there  is  virtually  no  legal  recognition,  or  at  least 
no  adequate  statutory  recognition,  of  secondary  education  in  the  United 
States.  The  facts  also  show,  as  Mr.  Mo  wry  would  have  seen  had  he  read 


22  NATIONAL    COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

his  own  report,  that  there  are  "very  few  States"  in  which  the  conditions  of 
townships,  in  pupils  or  resources,  permit  the  maintenance  of  successful  town- 
ship high  schools. 

"W.  T.  HARRIS,  of  Massachusetts:  I  commend  the  report  of  Mr.  Can- 
field  as  one  of  the  best,  both  in  form  and  matter,  that  has  ever  been  pre- 
sented to  the  Council.  The  question  of  secondary  education  is  one  of  the 
most  important  educational  questions  of  the  day ;  not  so  much,  however, 
the  increasing  of  accommodations  for  it,  as  the  direction  of  it  toward  prep- 
aration for  higher  instruction.  It  is  believed  that  the  nation  furnishes 
fewer  students  in  colleges  and  universities  pro  rata,  than  it  did  forty  years 
ago,  while  the  number  in  the  secondary  schools  has  increased  out  of  propor- 
tion. Our  whole  nation,  and  especially  our  cities,  are  suffering  from  the 
deficiency  in  college-educated  men.  It  is  to  be  considered  that  this  is  due 
to  the  rise  of  the  public  high  school  in  the  place  of  the  old  denominational 
academy.  The  high  school  aspires  to  be  a  sort  of  finishing-school ;  and  its 
teachers  do  not  keep  before  their  pupils  the  desirability  of  entering  college 
after  graduating  from  it.  In  consequence  of  this,  the  senior  year  of  the 
high  school  is  inferior  in  its  educative  influence  to  the  other  years.  In  the 
preparatory  school  the  senior  year  is  by  all  means  the  most  valuable  in  its 
effects,  because  there  exists  a  strong  tension  of  effort  to  prepare  oneself  to 
pass  the  examinations  for  college.  It  would  be  a  great  advantage  to  the 
pupils  of  our  high  schools  if  each  one  was  required  to  choose,  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  senior  year,  some  college,  whose  entrance  examinations  they 
were  to  pass,  as  a  condition  of  receiving  the  diploma  of  the  high  school. 
They  need  not  of  course  enter  the  college,  but  their  efforts,  during  the  year, 
to  qualify  themselves  to  do  so,  would  be  very  salutary.  Moreover,  the 
teachers  of  the  high  school  would  be  compelled  to  study  carefully  the  col- 
lege demands,  in  order  to  prepare  their  pupils  to  meet  them.  They  would  in- 
vestigate the  methods  of  higher  education,  and  would  be  set  in  the  way  of 
growing  themselves.  The  effect  of  such  an  arrangement  would  be  to  increase 
four-fold  the  number  of  pupils  from  our  high  schools  that  enter  college. 
Comparatively  few  of  the  pupils,  in  selecting  the  college  whose  examina- 
tion they  would  take,  would  expect  to  go  on  beyond  the  high  school;  but  as 
their  interest  in  the  preparation  increased,  their  thoughts  would  naturally 
dwell  on  the  college  course;  and  when  finally  they  had  passed  the  entrance 
examinations,  pupils  and  parents  would,  in  numerous  instances,  resolve  that 
the  college  course  should  be  undertaken.  This  arrangement  would  improve 
the  educative  quality  of  high-school  work,  and,  at  the  same  time,  would 
largely  increase  the  number  of  college-educated  men  in  all  our  cities  and 
towns.  The  value  of  this  on  our  national  life  cannot  be  too  highly  esti- 
mated. Our  political,  our  business,  and  our  social  life  are  all  revealing 
deep  questions  relative  to  the  welfare  of  the  community.  Anarchy  on  the 
one  hand,  and  Socialism  on  the  other,  are  setting  forward  their  claims  against 
the  existing  social  forms  and  established  laws.  In  many  a  specious  shape 


HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  THE  RURAL  POPULATION.  23 

they  win  adherents  from  among  the  half-educated,  or  the  naturally  restless 
and  discontented,  in  our  population.  The  high-school  graduate  is  far  more 
able  to  grapple  with  such  questions  than  the  graduate  of  the  elementary 
school;  but  he  is  as  far  below  the  average  college  graduate  in  ability  to  do 
this,  as  the  elementary  graduate  is  below  him.  It  is  evident  that  four  years 
of  severe  discipline,  added  to  secondary  instruction,  cannot  fail  to  produce 
a  greater  maturity  of  mind.  The  higher  studies  involve  the  history  and 
rationale  of  institutions,  philosophy,  literature,  political  economy,  logic,  and 
precisely  such  insight-giving  studies  as  furnish  the  much-needed  education 
for  the  leaders  of  public  opinion.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  this  question  may 
be  discussed,  in  some  shape,  every  year  in  this  Council. 

D.  L.  KIEHLE,  of  Minnesota:  Let  me  explain  the  Minnesota  plan  in 
regard  to  State  high  schools.  They  are  organized  and  controlled  by  the 
local  board  of  education.  They  are  received  under  the  supervision  of  the 
State  high-school  board  upon  application,  and  receive  from  this  board  the 
sum  of  $400  per  annum  on  condition  that  the  high  school  is  supported  ac- 
cording to  the  rules  of  the  board.  These  rules  require  the  following  con- 
ditions : 

1.  The  principal  must  hold  the  certificate  of  the  State  board. 

2.  The  school  must  support  an  approved  course  of  study. 

3.  Examinations  must  be  held  in  every  subject,  when  completed,  with 
questions  furnished  by  the  State  board. 

4.  Each  school  must  make  a  term  report  of  attendance,  work  done,  etc. 

5.  Each  school  is  visited  annually  by  a  representative  of  the  State  board. 

6.  Each  school  must  give  free  tuition  to  non-residents  capable  of  entering 
the  high  school. 

The  advantages  of  this  system  are  very  great.  The  school  gets  8400  to 
begin  with  ;  it  is  stimulated  and  improved  by  its  responsibility  to  the  State; 
the  county  is  supplied  with  high-school  advantages;  students  receive  certifi- 
cates which  entitle  them  to  admission  to  the  freshman  class  of  the  Univer- 
sity, and  are  thus  directed  and  encouraged  toward  a  higher  education. 

S.  H.  PEABODY,  of  Illinois:  A  large  majority,  probably  two-thirds,  of 
the  young  people  of  Illinois  who  have  passed  beyond  the  work  of  the  pri- 
mary school  but  have  not  reached  that  of  the  college  or  university,  have  no 
legal  standing  in  any  school  supported  at  public  charge.  The  cities  and 
larger  towns  support  high  schools  of  varied  grades  of  excellence,  from  those 
which  are  such  only  in  name,  to  those  of  the  first  class  in  the  larger  cities. 
But  the  pupils  from  the  rural  districts  have  no  rights  in  such  schools.  To 
some  they  are  welcome  on  payment  of  a  reasonable  fee ;  to  others  they  may 
be  admitted  only  at  an  exorbitant  price,  really  meant  to  be  prohibitory; 
from  some  they  are  entirely  debarred.  Two,  three  or  more  rural  townships 
may  unite  in  supporting  a  secondary  school ;  but  the  districts  are  sparsely 
settled,  and  this  solution  does  not  practically  occur.  The  political  unit  next 
larger  than  the  township  is  the  county,  a  unit  by  which  general  public  busi- 


24  NATIONAL   COUNCIL   OF  EDUCATION. 

ness  is  transacted  much  more  commonly  than  is  done  in  the  Eastern  States, 
and  one  to  which  we  of  the  West  may  naturally  look  for  the  working  out 
of  a  problem  of  such  evident  importance. 

E.  E.  WHITE,  of  Ohio :  I  simply  wish  to  emphasize  the  necessity  of  doing 
something  to  bring  secondary  education  within  reach  of  country  youth.  The 
city  and  town  high  schools  have  destroyed  most  of  the  old  academies,  in 
which  so  many  of  us  received  our  preparatory,  or  secondary  educational  in- 
spirations; and  yet  they  do  not  take  the  place  of  the  academy,  so  far  as  the 
educational  interests  of  country  youth  are  concerned.  The  schooling  offered 
by  the  common  school  does  not  fit  country  youth  to  enter,  with  advantage, 
the  high  school,  which  is  a  part  of  a  finer  graded  system.  Besides,  the  cost 
of  board  in  cities,  the  social  life  and  habits  of  city  youth,  and  the  absence 
of  home  direction  and  control,  make  the  city  high  school  not  the  best  school 
for  country  youth.  The  fact  is  that  country  youth  are  not  going  to  the  city 
and  town  high  schools  for  secondary  education,  but  to  normal  schools,  pre- 
paratory departments  of  colleges,  etc.  If  city  and  town  high  schools  are  to 
be  depended  upon  for  secondary  education,  there  must  be  an  adjustment  be- 
tween these  high  schools  and  the  common  schools  of  the  county.  What  is 
needed  is  the  organization  of  secondary  education,  as  the  able  report  shows. 
Whether  the  high  school  is  to  be  a  county  institution,  or  not,  I  do  not  at- 
tempt to  decide;  but  there  must  be  high  schools  within  reach  of  country 
youth,  and  adapted  to  their  needs  and  conditions. 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


-THE  SCHOOL  BULLETIN  PUBLICATIONS.- 


Music  in  the  School  Boom. 

1.    The  Sonq  Budget.    A  collections  of  Songs  and  Music  for  Educational 
Gatherings.    By  E.  V.  DE  GRAFF.    Small  4to,  paper,  pp.  76.    15  cts. 
This  book  owes  its  popularity  to  two  causes : 

(1)  It  gives  a  great  deal  for  the  money. 

(2)  The  songs  are  not  only  numerous  (107),  but  they  are  the  standard  favor- 
ites of  the  last  fifty  years. 

This  is  why  the  book  contains  more  music  that  will  be  used  than  any  other 
book  published.  For  in  all  other  books  that  we  know  of.  two  thirds  of  the 
tunes  are  written  by  the  compilers,  who  are  of  course  partial  to  their  own 
productions.  Sup't  De  Graff  wrote  no  songs  of  his  own,  but  gathered  those 
which  his  long  experience  as  a  conductor  of  teachers'  institutes  had  shown 
him  to  be  the  most  generally  familiar  and  pleasing. 

In  fact,  the  success  of  this  book  has  been  due  to  the  fact  that  only  those 
songs  were  admitted  that  have  proved  to  be  universal  favorites.  This  in- 
volved a  large  original  outlay,  as  much  as  fifty  dollars  having  been  paid  for 
the  right  to  use  a  single  song.  But  the  best  were  taken  wherever  they 
could  be  found  and  at  whatever  C9st,  and  the  result  is  a  school  singing-book 
of  popularity  unexampled.  For  instance,  a  single  linn  in  Cleveland,  Ohio, 
J.  R.  Holcomb  &  Co.,  had  purchased  of  us  up  to  Feb.  15, 1888,  no  less  than 
9730  copies,  4500  within  the  last  six  months,  besides  2100  of  the  School  Room 
Chorus. 

%.  The  School  Eoom  Chorus.  A  collection  of  Two  Hundred  Songs  for 
Public  and  Private  Schools,  compiled  by  E.  V.  DE  GRAFT.  Small,  4to,  boards, 
pp.  148.  35  cts. 

This  is  an  enlarged  edition  of  the  Song  Budget,  with  twice  the  number 
of  songs.  The  plates  of  the  last  edition  are  so  arranged  that  it  is  identical 
with  the  Song  Budget  as  far  as  page  68,  so  that  both  books  can  be  used  to- 
gether. The  Budget  and  Chorus  are  particularly  adapted  for  Teachers'  Asso- 
ciations and  Institutes.  At  these  prices  every  meeting  of  teachers  can  be  sup- 
plied with  one  or  the  other,  while  the  fact  that  the  tunes  are  standard 
favorites  makes  it  easy  for  any  audience  to  join  in  the  singing  at  sight. 

3.  The  Diadem  of  School  Songs :  containing  Songs  and  Music  for  all 
grades  of  Schools,  a  new  system  of  Instruction  in  the  elements  of  Music, 
and  a  Manual  of  Directions  for  the  use  of  Teachers.  By  WM.  TILIINGHAST. 
Small,  4to,  boards,  pp.  1GO.  50  cts. 

This  book,  of  which  Dr.  French,  the  veteran  institute -instructor  was 
associate  author,  gives  an  exceedingly  simple  and  practical  system  of  in- 
struction as  well  as  a  valuable  collection  of  songs. 

U.  HatJ  a  Hundred  Songs,  for  the  School -Room  and  Home.  By  HATTIE 
S.  RUSSELL.  IGmo,  boards,  pp.  103.  35  cts. 

These  songs  are  all  original,  but  without  music. 

5.  The  School  Vocalist ;  containing  a  thorough  system  of  elementary 
instruction  in  Vocal  Music,  with  Practical  Exercises,  Songs,  Hymns,  Chants, 
&c.,  adapted  to  the  use  of  Schools  and  Academies.    By  E.  LOCKE,  and  S. 
NOURSE.    Oblong,  boards,  pp.  160.    Price  50  cts. 

6.  The  School  Melodist.    A  Song  Book  for  School  and  Home.    By  E. 
LOCKE  and  S.  NOURSE.    Oblong,  boards,  pp.  160.    Price  50  cts. 

7.  The  Song  Life,  for  Sunday  Schools,  etc.,  illustrating  in  song  the 
journey  of  Christiana  and  her  children  to  the  Celestial  City.    Small  4to 
boards,  pp.  176.    Price  ;">..• 

Nos.  5,  6,  and  7  are  books  that  have  had  their  day,  but  of  which  we  have 
a  few  hundred  copies  of  each  on  hand.  These  we  will  sell  at  10  ets.  each ; 
If  to  go  by  mail,  6  cts.  each  extra.  They  contain  much  good  music. 

~  C.  W.  BARDKEiST,  P**I>ii»]iier,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 


I   MVKRSITY   OK   <  'A  I- 1  FOllN  I A    Ul'.UAKY 


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turns  earnest  thanks,  and  hopes  they  may  find  reward  in  the  use  of  this 
new  century  of  songs. 

C.  Vvr.  BAKDEEN,  Publisher,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 


30m-6,'14 


